Our lives and the lives of those who impact our lives merge to create a river whose current carries us forward from our beginning to our end. Because we are only one part of a whole, the river each of us remembers is different, and there are many versions of the stories we tell about the past. In all of them there is truth, and in all of them a good deal of innocent misremembering. This week’s story is one of those. Its roots come from similar tales all of which originated in Central America.
Hundreds of years ago, in Guatemala, a loving and loved soul named Brother Pedro lived. Though centuries have now passed, his good works live on today in popular tales that have been passed down from generation to generation. Brother Pedro was a poor man, and stayed poor his entire life, for he gave whatever he had to those in need. He turned his own small, humble home into a place where the sick could find care. It is said that at night he walked the city streets ringing a little bell to remind people to thank God for their blessings and share those same gifts with others.
One day, Brother Pedro was walking toward the city when he came upon a ragged man who was sitting beside the road. The man wiped away a tear as Brother Pedro approached.
“What ails you, my friend?” Brother Pedro gently asked, observing his despair.
“Oh, my troubles weigh heavily,” the man sobbed. “My wife is ill and needs medicine. My children are hungry and want food. But I have no money and can find no work. I don’t know what to do.”
Brother Pedro gazed at the suffering man’s face and longed to help. But his own clothes were just as ragged, his own cupboard was just as bare, his own pockets as empty. He had nothing to give.
He turned his gaze upward, hoping for an answer. The sun’s warm glow spread across his kind face, “Dear Lord,” he whispered, “help me help this man.”
There was a rustling at their feet, and from behind a gray rock, a bright green lizard crept into the sun. Brother Pedro stooped and gently caught it by the tail. With a smile he placed it into his companion’s hands.
The poor man looked at Brother Pedro in bewilderment. Then he opened his hands and gasped. The lizard was suddenly rigid and heavy and hard. But it was still a rich green. The man peered closely and beheld a miracle. The live creature had turned into an emerald lizard.
“Take this and sell it,” Brother Pedro said. “With the money it brings you, you will be able to care for your wife and feed your children, and perhaps you will have enough left over to tend to others in need as well.”
The grateful man did as he was told. He hurried to a jeweler where he was able to sell the rare emerald for a considerable amount of gold coins. With his newfound fortune, the man was able to buy medicine for his wife and feed his family. All grew healthy and strong again. The years passed. The man worked hard. His children grew up to be prosperous ranchers and farmers, and their wealth increased tenfold. They lived quietly and sensibly, and they took care of their aging parents, and gave much of their growing fortune to help the poor and needy.
The day came when their father returned to the jeweler where he had sold the miraculous lizard. He bought the gem back and set out to find Brother Pedro.
The good Brother was much grayer now, and even poorer and more shabbily dressed than before. But his wrinkled face was every bit as kind.
“Do you remember me, Padre?” the visitor asked.
Brother Pedro looked at the stranger closely, searching his mind.
“I met you on the road one day long ago. My wife was sick, and my children were starving.”
Brother Pedro shook his head. There had been so many.
“You gave me an emerald lizard and told me to trade it for gold.”
Brother Pedro’s face brightened.
“Of course, of course! Now I remember. And how did things turn out? How is your wife? How are your children?”
“They are well,” the man replied. “But now I’ve brought your emerald back. It has given my family health and wealth. You’ve worked hard all your life in the service of others. Take the gem, and rest from your labors. You can sell it for gold as I did and live your last days in ease.”
He then took the sparkling lizard from his pocket and placed it into the good Brother’s hands.
Smiling gently, Brother Pedro stooped and set it on the ground. At once it turned into a live green lizard and disappeared behind a gray rock.
What does one person give to another? He gives of himself, of the most precious that he has, he gives his life. This does not necessarily mean that he sacrifices his life for the other—but that he gives him of that which is alive in him; he gives him of his joy, of his interest, of his understanding, of his knowledge, of his humor, of his sadness—of all expressions and manifestations of that which is alive in him. In thus giving of his life, he enriches the other person, he enhances the others sense of aliveness by enhancing his own sense of aliveness. He does not give in order to receive; giving is in itself exquisite joy. But in giving he cannot help bringing something to life in the other person, and this which is brought to life reflects back to him. –Erich Fromm, The Art of Loving
Have an AWE-full Weekend and Thanksgiving!
William “Bill” Bacque